Comments on: The Difference Between Math and Modeling with Math in Five Seconds /2017/the-difference-between-math-and-modeling-with-math-in-five-seconds/ less helpful Mon, 22 May 2017 03:36:17 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.2 By: Steve Rein /2017/the-difference-between-math-and-modeling-with-math-in-five-seconds/#comment-2434614 Mon, 22 May 2017 03:36:17 +0000 /?p=26412#comment-2434614 In reply to Steve Rein.

In casual exploration the standard statistical approach (taking a log of each x = balloon number and y = time) gives too much weight to early datapoints and so the least-squares fit tends to poorly predict what happens at the end of the video. I’m needing to think about the best way to fit this trend. Maybe least squares without transforming the variables … but that is a less straightforward analysis unless one is, for example, a junior statistics major in college.

If you want I can e-mail you code in R (free software that statisticians tend to use) that would help with analyzing these data.

]]> By: Dan Meyer /2017/the-difference-between-math-and-modeling-with-math-in-five-seconds/#comment-2434594 Sun, 21 May 2017 02:09:05 +0000 /?p=26412#comment-2434594 In reply to Steve Rein.

Good catch. It popped at the same time as the 55th. I used that spreadsheet to drive the counter on the video. Now updated so it’s more accurate for other kinds of analysis.

]]> By: Steve Rein /2017/the-difference-between-math-and-modeling-with-math-in-five-seconds/#comment-2434587 Sat, 20 May 2017 15:30:19 +0000 /?p=26412#comment-2434587 In reply to Steve Rein.

Hey, what happened to the 54th balloon? No data on that one?

]]> By: Steve Rein /2017/the-difference-between-math-and-modeling-with-math-in-five-seconds/#comment-2434583 Sat, 20 May 2017 12:54:40 +0000 /?p=26412#comment-2434583 In reply to Steve Rein.

Thanks so much!

]]> By: Dan Meyer /2017/the-difference-between-math-and-modeling-with-math-in-five-seconds/#comment-2434560 Fri, 19 May 2017 14:00:16 +0000 /?p=26412#comment-2434560 In reply to Steve Rein.

Sure thing, Steve.

]]> By: Steve Rein /2017/the-difference-between-math-and-modeling-with-math-in-five-seconds/#comment-2434559 Fri, 19 May 2017 13:01:19 +0000 /?p=26412#comment-2434559 This could be a good exercise for a discussion of curve-fitting by linearization then regression. (At least that is how I would discuss this at the collegiate level in one of my classes.) Are the data available for the public to use for educational purposes?

]]> By: Dan Meyer /2017/the-difference-between-math-and-modeling-with-math-in-five-seconds/#comment-2433151 Sat, 25 Mar 2017 03:14:13 +0000 /?p=26412#comment-2433151 In reply to Dan Meyer.

@Jim, check out Screen 3. Click “Exponential.” Pretend you only had data for the first 25 balloons. Model those data with the exponential function. Look how far you’d be off. I’m happy to take this further but I can’t figure out what to do with that discrepancy.

@Kevin is on the case also.

]]> By: Jim Pardun /2017/the-difference-between-math-and-modeling-with-math-in-five-seconds/#comment-2433150 Sat, 25 Mar 2017 02:28:04 +0000 /?p=26412#comment-2433150 In reply to Dan Meyer.

This guy first tipped me to the video.

Thanks for the incredible collaboration on this project. I too agree that an exponential decay model could make for a very effective lesson. I would be interested in using a re-edited version if it’s not too hard to create at this point in time. Thanks.
]]> By: Galen /2017/the-difference-between-math-and-modeling-with-math-in-five-seconds/#comment-2432948 Fri, 17 Mar 2017 16:25:02 +0000 /?p=26412#comment-2432948 In reply to Galen.

Videos for the Halloween Scare are here: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/urak3po6owdf0x0/AAB9APuDCGC_nmMKXw-X15Gla?dl=0

]]> By: Miles /2017/the-difference-between-math-and-modeling-with-math-in-five-seconds/#comment-2432930 Fri, 17 Mar 2017 04:28:26 +0000 /?p=26412#comment-2432930 In reply to Miles.

Ah, that makes sense. (Sorry if I was being redundant.) What are your thoughts on how much of the impatience lies with the how we phrase the question? Can we reduce the impatience by presenting the problem in a way that more explicitly highlights what assumptions the students should make?

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